New spectacular footage shows a Ukrainian makeshift Kamikaze
drone setting its sights on a massive 2S19 Msta-S self-propelled howitzer,
which weighs 42 tons. This Soviet-era armored artillery boasts 15 millimeters of armor,
explicitly designed to fend off direct hits from small firearms and shell fragments.
Yet, despite the howitzer’s colossal weight—many tens of thousands of times that of the drone—the
nimble airborne assailant advances. It locates its target in an open field. Inside the armored
vehicle, the sound of machinery and the blasts as it fires make it impossible for the crew to
detect the faint hum of the incoming drone. A blinding flash and a towering column of
fire emerge in a split second. The footage is bone-chilling. Militaries worldwide are becoming
deeply alarmed as they realize makeshift weapons costing just a few hundred dollars can annihilate
assets worth millions or wipe out entire platoons of soldiers from vast distances away…
Ukraine’s “kamikaze” first-person-view or FPV drones are the new,
cost-effective menace making waves both on the battleground and on Russian social media.
While unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs, have become commonplace since the onset
of Russia’s invasion, their rapid evolution remains an unsettling spectacle for nations
observing anxiously from the fringes. Recent footage circulation alleges the
FPV drone’s escalating impact and shows stacks prepped for coordinated assaults.
Weighing generally no more than 500g, FPV drones were initially designed for hobbyist racing.
Today, mirroring the trend of many other drones in Ukraine, they’re being retrofitted with weapons.
These nimble racers can carry rocket-propelled grenades or RPGs weighing up to 1 kilogram and
can swiftly lock onto targets for lethal, one-shot “kamikaze” strikes. Given their
price tag of under $1,000, Ukrainians aren’t fretting over retrieving them.
These racing drones possess powerful motors, equipping them to carry RPGs. Ben Caves,
Deputy Director of Defence and Security at RAND Europe, remarked: (QUOTE) “What you’re seeing
with these FPV drones is kind of an evolution in terms of ability, speed, capability and price,
which is a really important factor. These are more sort of a specialist Ferrari-type
drone … designed to be fast and manoeuvrable.” Their operational radius caps at about 10km,
but their standout feature lies in the control mechanism. Pilots don VR-like goggles that stream
live footage from the drones, offering an immersive first-person perspective.
This unique viewpoint allows for precision strikes, enabling ambushes in confined
spaces or lying in wait for the perfect target. Several videos depicting these
dramatic drone assaults have emerged. Ukraine’s usage underlines a paradigm
shift in warfare tactics. Russia, meanwhile, employs Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones for its
kamikaze-style attacks. Loaded with explosives and pre-set with target GPS coordinates, these drones
predominantly target key Ukrainian infrastructure instead of mobile units or armored vehicles.
Though they dwarf Ukraine’s FPV drones in size and power, they are considerably pricier and
less accessible. Countries like Australia, the USA, and Canada have levied sanctions on those
supplying these Iranian drones to Russia. This past January, Ukraine initiated a
fundraising campaign for a 1,000 FPV drone fleet, heralding them as a revolutionary combat tool.
Nastya Konfederat, part of the Ukrainian military’s aerial reconnaissance and drone
piloting teams, believes mass production could be a game-changer. In a live video conference,
she asserted: (QUOTE) “Just FPVs with a payload can stop the enemy’s offensive.”
Many countries worldwide, including powerhouses like the USA, are becoming increasingly uneasy.
The accessibility and affordability of these improvised weapons make them
available to nearly any militant group or even lone individuals, and the potential
destruction they can unleash is substantial. Yet, their apprehension intensifies when
pondering the future. While a faction might possess thousands of FPVs,
they’re unlikely to have an equivalent number of pilots to command them concurrently.
However, with the sweeping influence of AI across various sectors, experts such as Ben
Caves, the Deputy Director of Defence and Security at RAND Europe, are anxious. They anticipate a
revolutionary shift when these cost-effective, semi-autonomous drones advance further,
distancing human involvement in combat decisions. This shift raises profound ethical concerns.
Removing humans from the process becomes particularly contentious in scenarios
involving drone swarms, which already pose defensive challenges in their current state.
Caves delved into the matter, stating, (QUOTE): “Imagine you get to a situation where you’ve got
AI swarms of drones making their own decisions about what they choose to target and not target
and there’s no human making that decision.” But, speculation is not needed to assess
the significance of these drones. They are redefining the rules of combat and taking
down some of the most imposing armored vehicles on the battlefield right now.
The 2S19 Msta-S, commonly known as Msta, represents a cornerstone in Soviet engineering
prowess. The massive howitzer, which resembles an oversized tank, takes its name from the Msta
River in Russia. As the curtain began to draw on the Cold War, the Soviet Union,
eager to replace older models like the 2S3 Akatsiya, envisioned a mobile howitzer packing
an unmatched punch. The result was the Msta-S. Equipped with a 152-millimeter 2A65 howitzer
as its primary armament, it can fire both standard and rocket-assisted shells over
impressive distances, often exceeding 25 kilometers. A standout feature of this war
machine is its rapid responsiveness. Courtesy of its semi-automatic loading mechanism, the Msta-S
can deliver a salvo of 5-6 rounds per minute, unleashing devastation upon foes.
But it’s not solely an offensive armored vehicle. Built upon the armored framework of the T-80 tank,
its interior offers significant protection to its crew. They are shielded from small arms, shell
fragments, and the looming dangers of chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear threats.
However, its hulking size —which tips the scales at over 42 tons—doesn’t compromise its agility.
Driven by an 840 hp diesel engine, the Msta-S can attain speeds up to 60 km/h and traverse a
distance of 500 kilometers without a hitch. While it proved its mettle during the Second
Chechen War, the Msta is now realizing that the dynamics of 21st-century warfare have
transformed radically. Even with its advanced tech and robust armor, this $4-million Russian
juggernaut isn’t impervious to the threat of a diminutive hobbyist drone armed with an RPG.
The astonishing takedown unfolds in a video uploaded to X, courtesy of the
Ukrainian military. The scene begins with a vast open field, the camera steadily zooming
in until the howitzer becomes discernible. Engrossed in firing, the Russian artillery
unit is oblivious to being in the crosshairs. The footage soon transitions to a first-person
perspective, capturing the drone’s rapid advance towards its Russian quarry.
Maintaining its trajectory, the drone gets perilously close, mere meters from
the artillery. Then, the perspective shifts back to a panoramic view, with the Msta-S central to
the frame. What follows is a sudden, blinding flash, succeeded by an eruption of flames.
Billows of fire ascend skyward, the magnitude of the explosion discernible even from great
distances. Eventually, the flames succumb to an imposing white plume of smoke,
dwarfing the landscape below. The nimble, cost-effective FPV
drones leveraged by the Ukrainians present a challenge for the Russian military. Their
outdated Soviet-era arsenal struggles to counter the drones’ agility, swiftness, and expendability.
The aftermath reveals the Msta-S reduced to rubble, depriving the
Russian campaign of a valuable war asset. As these innovative yet makeshift technologies
proliferate across Ukrainian battlegrounds, it remains to be seen if they will be the
undoing of the Russian armored divisions or if Russia will conjure a countermeasure
to safeguard its mechanized forces. Anti-drone technology is swiftly advancing
in tandem with the swift evolution of UAVs. Most drone systems are vulnerable to jamming,
leading both warring parties to incessantly innovate and adapt different jamming techniques.
The US and Israel have been exceptionally proactive. Alongside
honing their anti-jamming capabilities, they’ve been formulating and supplying
Ukraine with advanced anti-drone solutions. Recently, Russian media highlighted the successful
testing and imminent deployment of their new Serp-VS5 anti-drone system, which can jam and
detect encroaching drones in a full 360-degree sweep, covering a distance of up to 5km.
The defense against kamikaze drone assaults essentially boils down to a numbers
game. Ukraine’s experience with Russia’s kamikaze drones underscores this reality:
neutralize 85% of the incoming threats, and still, a mere fraction slipping through can wreak havoc.
But the race is on, and time can only tell if these emerging Anti-drone technologies can be
implemented to end FPV drones' rampage, especially against Russian armored units.